GILROY
–– The San Benito High baseball team lost to Gilroy 8-2 Friday
after defeating them 3-1 just two days earlier.
GILROY –– The San Benito High baseball team lost to Gilroy 8-2 Friday after defeating them 3-1 just two days earlier.
Gilroy used a two-run second inning and a three-run fourth inning to pull away with the victory.
After scoring a run in the first and second innings, San Benito had a tough time figuring out how to hit pitcher Peter Mickartz.
“We let too many pitches go by,” said Haybaler coach Derek Barnes. “We weren’t as aggressive as we were last game. We got ourselves in too many holes. The guy was getting his breaking ball over, so he was able to get us to chase it. The balls that we did hit hard were the ones we jumped on early.”
Gilroy (8-3, 3-1 TCAL), who was ranked 11th by the San Jose Mercury, has almost doubled San Benito’s run production (90-47).
San Benito falls to 5-6 overall and 1-3 in league and is in fourth place behind Gilroy. Both Live Oak and Palma sit on top of the league with 4-0 records.
“Hollister didn’t have as good of time at the plate as they had the first time,” said Gilroy coach Clint Wheeler, whose team is off to the best start in his five years of coaching. “They were never really able to get into the game. We haven’t done too well on the road.”
Karson Klauer, who had two of the Balers four hits, hit an RBI double in the first inning. In the second inning, Breyon Canez struck out but reached base after the ball got by the catcher, whose throw hit Canez en route to the base.
Scott Mead hit a little dribbler and then stopped to force the fielder to make the tag, allowing Canez to go to second. Canez took third on a passed ball and scored on Brett Fugoni’s hit to left field.
Mike Lango was the only other Baler to have a hit in the game. Tony Vasquez, who subbed in late in the game, hit a ball to the wall in left in the seventh inning, but it turned out to be a routine fly ball.
Gilroy took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the second inning with an RBI double by Ron Colmon and an RBI by Chris Hernandez. The big hit for the Mustangs came in the fourth inning – a two-RBI double to the wall by Ben Hemeon.
“We have to get some wins together and get some confidence back in the guys,” Barnes said. “We are going to see if some of the five or six guys that have been on the bench can help us get something going.”
San Benito will play against North Salinas on Wednesday and Saturday. Both games will be at home because of a conflict with the Vikings’ schedule.
“There will not be any games easy for anyone this year,” Barnes said. “We still have to go out there and play. I still believe it is tough for anyone to beat us if we play up to our capability. We have to learn to stop shooting ourselves in the foot.”
